Ease of Learning: 5 / 5

Ease of Use: 5 / 5

Enjoyment: 4 / 5

Design: 5 / 5

Value for Money: 4 / 5

PC cases come and go. One is usually purchased to hold your PC components, and that’s it. I’ll be the first one to admit that’s how I purchase my PC cases (and I own a PC sales site!), but what about those who need a little more oomph out of their case. And a little more shine?

Raidmax introduces the Vampire chassis. The XL-ATX motherboard housing is a monster to begin with and has a somewhat intimidating look. Standing tall, this black behemoth is already an imposing sight for any gaming rig.

Its weight is both a pro and con. It weighs in at just over 12Kg. Not only does it make the case quite sturdy, but incredibly difficult to lug around. Due to the lack of any form of handles I wouldn’t recommend it for LANing.

The internal features are something to behold. As stated it can take an XL-ATX motherboard, like the MSI Intel Z87 XPOWER, and thus comes equipped with ten expansion slots. Do you want to run a 4-way SLi in your case? Now you can! You’ll be able to house 7 3.5” (or 2.5”) hard drives and 5 x 5.25” external drives. Vampire’s entire component design is tool free, with the exception of installing the motherboard. This makes setting up the case an incredibly easy and efficient process; made more so by rubber flaps that allow for easy cable pass through.

Raidmax’s Vampire comes with 1 x 200mm intake fan and 1 x 140mm outtake for standard airflow. It can be fitted with 2 x 120mm side fans and 2 x 120/140mm top fans. Four rubber holes on the back of the case enable easy fitting of a liquid cooling system. The top and bottom of the case have removable dust trays for cleaning of the PSU and fans.

Front external connections allow for 2 x USB 2.0 and 2 x USB 3.0 (if your motherboard supports it) devices. If you’re interested in FireWire, you’ll need an internal card. The external connections do hold two interesting features: 1. A fan controller for your internal fans, including speed and on/off switch. 2. An external hot-swap bay for a 2.5” drive – this is one of the case’s best features, and one I would certainly make use of.

Overall I would recommend this case to anyone wanting a functional, stylish, high-end gaming case. It’s not for the average consumer.